Empowered People, Empowered Organization

What is empowerment? How does it differ from delegation?  Are they the same? What is authority?

Abbreviations:

E: Empowerment (power to take decisions in the assigned tasks with autonomy)

D: Delegation (assigned tasks)

D+: Decision making (the right to choose with authority)

R: Responsibility (accountable for the tasks)

A: Authority (the rights to the power)

A+: Autonomy (the right and space required to be free to take decisions)

C+: Competence (knowledge, skills and attitude)

C: Confidence (trust in oneself)

T: Trust (the confidence in others)

P: Power (influence and authority)

Now that we have the values (abbreviations), let’s workout the formulas.  Empowerment is defined as delegation with responsibility and authority.  The formula of Empowerment is E=DRA+(A+)D+.  Delegation=R-A.  Authority=PR+T.  Finally, the formula of Trust is T=(C+)+C. 

Empowerment cannot be achieved without authority.  Authority on the other hand cannot be achieved without trust.  Trust cannot be achieved without confidence. And confidence cannot be achieved without competence. 

To start empowering your people, develop leadership competence in the middle and top management, otherwise, nothing will be implemented.  Leaders believe in people that people know best and accordingly will provide them with the autonomy to make decisions.  In fact, empowerment is the core of leadership and differentiates leadership from management. 

Moreover, organizations should have systems in place that define the boundaries of each manager\leader’s job, such as the delegation of authority matrix (DOA).  Employees\HR manual should be published and easily accessed.  Employee should have an employee handbook that details their rights. The manual should be updated on a semi or annual basis. Training should be continuous to provide people with the required competence. 

Managers should build trust in their people and walk the talk with them.  When certain competence is required, people should be trained and allow to practice, otherwise learning will remain as a concept\knowledge and a waste of time and money.  If knowledge is not practiced, then it is not a skill that can be put to the test.    

There should also be standards that measure the required competence and it is not merely what the manager feels or wants.  Standards are built on the industries best practice. 

Finally, a healthy environment is a must with no blame policy will aid to transform delegation to empowerment and mistakes to learning. 

When you empower people, you empower your organization to be the best in class, because people know best.  They will perform their work in autonomy and with passion, which is the igniting “fuel” to success.

If you Google empowerment, you’ll find more than 50 million definitions around.  However, if you go back to the basics, you’ll find that empowerment has its own known formula of combining various derivatives, which are the prerequisites to reaching the right mix for a world-class organization that thrives on success and celebrates its people in the process.  And the right mix always starts with the right leadership in action.